


Digital Divide

by DeaExMachina13



Category: Gundam Wing
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, M/M, Masturbation
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-28
Updated: 2019-03-04
Packaged: 2019-10-18 01:09:22
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,478
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17571440
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DeaExMachina13/pseuds/DeaExMachina13
Summary: Duo performs as a camboy, and a mysterious stranger starts showing up in his sessions online





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I've written a lot in the past but this is my first time publishing anything like this online... figured I'd just go for it and see what happens. Wrote this on a spur of the moment over the last two evenings, and I think I'll try to continue if there's interest. I enjoyed writing it, at least. I quickly proofread this but haven't had any other eyes on it - so it is what it is for now. Thank you for reading :)

Duo leaned back against the wall behind his bed and lazily ran his fingers up and down his sternum as he watched the stream of messages in the chat room filter in on his laptop’s screen. He’d been logged on for a little while now flirting and chatting — and thus still had on a tight pair of jeans — but that wouldn’t last. It never took very long for the chat room’s patrons to demand more, or rather, less.

He was only going to be online for this session for a little while longer before he had to leave for a study group at the university library. School was the reason he was even in these sessions to begin with, although a part of him enjoyed the attention. If only he got this sort of attention in real life, he mused.

> MR_THICK: what r u waiting for? Take it off already

> daddy6969: maybe you can suck your own dick for us this time, baby ;)

Duo internally rolled his eyes, but for the benefit of the camera he turned his mouth up in a smirk and slid his right hand down to his belt buckle. “Where’s the fun in immediately getting to the main attraction, hmm? The best things in life are worth waiting for...”

He brought his left hand up and rolled his nipple between his fingers while he rubbed his cock through his jeans. Leaning his head back, he moaned just enough to be audible to his audience. When he first started doing this, his nervousness made it difficult to get hard but after a semester of evenings just like this one it was effortless.

Rolling his head to the side so that the screen was again in his sights and letting a flirtacious grin slide onto his face, he slowly slid his zipper down. He slipped his hand under the elastic band of his boxer briefs and tugged his dick out into the open.

> camaroking: fucking finally

> MR_THICK: bet u would like my dick in ur hand a lot more, u tease

> camaroking: i can think of one really big way to shut your mouth up next time

“It’s true, I’d love to have a special someone with me now instead of sitting on this big bed by my lonesome. I’m so grateful that I have you to keep me company.” He kept his eyes trained on his laptop’s camera. Platitudes like those always went over well with the viewers, even if he felt a pang in his chest at the fact that it would really be lovely to have someone in his life who wasn’t paying him and communicating with him through a keyboard.

He was stroking his cock in earnest now, moaning freely at the sensation. He let his eyes drift closed again, but left his head turned towards the camera. “I love it when you touch me like that. I just want you to fuck me so bad, baby. Want you to fuck me so hard into the mattress.”

Letting his mind wander, he thought about one of the members of the study group who he would see soon. Quiet and reserved, but with intense blue eyes and a fit, sexy body, he hadn’t been able to buck the crush he’d developed on the guy. He let himself give in to the fantasy, at least for this brief amount of time.

He imagined he was right here in this bed with him, straddling his legs, and that it was his classmate’s hands on his dick instead of his own. His breath on his face, hot and warm, as he pumped his cock up and down.

“Oh fu-ck”, he moaned out as he came powerfully. Breathing hard and returning to reality, he turned back to the laptop’s camera. “That was really fucking great,” he slid his hand back up his chest and took inventory of the fact that he’d managed to create a creamy, wet trail from his belly button to his collar bone. He’d definitely need to clean up before he left for the library, which didn’t leave him much time if he didn’t want to be late. And he definitely didn’t, not only because it was rude but because the aforementioned classmate seemed to have a real stick up his ass about punctuality.

“As always, thanks for watching my stream, guys. Sorry to run so soon but I have a prior engagement that I need to get to. I’ll see all of you guys next week,” he closed out with a wink and then a sigh. He took a peek at how much his patrons had thrown his way for his performance: enough for the art supplies he needed for his next project, at least. 

Then he did a doubletake: one person alone had sent him $200 tonight. It was from a username that he recognized but not one that he’d ever recalled interacting with him via the chat feature. The “tip” came with a short note: “You look so beautiful when you’re overcome with pleasure like that.”

Definitely not the sort of thing he was used to seeing in the chat logs.

He didn’t have much time, but he started typing a reply anyway. “Thank you - you’re too kind (and generous)! Maybe there’s something special you’d like to see next time? ;-)”

Waiting several seconds in anticipation of a reply, he yelped when he glanced at the clock in the corner of his screen. He was cutting it razor close and he still needed to get himself cleaned up, then make it across campus to the library.

Rushing to the bathroom and using a wet towel to wipe himself off, his mind returned to this mysterious patron. His income from this side hustle had gradually been increasing with time and popularity. His long, braided hair and violet eyes made him stand out amongst the other performers on the site. He’d heard that sometimes performers can snag a lucrative viewer and make some pretty good cash but this was the first time he’d ever experienced something like this. He wondered who this person was, what they looked like, how old they were. He snorted. In all likelihood, it was an overweight, perverted middle-aged man who jerked off to cam boys in his dark basement because he couldn’t find anyone in real life.

Ouch, maybe that last part hit a little too close to home. At least he wasn’t doing in a dark basement.

He hastily shoved his books into his backpack, shouted a goodbye to his roommate as he shoved his feet in his shoes, then dashed out the door of his apartment. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you so much to the kind people who have left comments and kudos. I was burning up with embarrassment over publishing the first chapter, to be honest, but I felt motivated to write this second chapter. no smut in this chapter but more will be forthcoming...

Duo glanced at his watch as he hurriedly walked to the library. He didn’t want to be late, for several reasons. One: this study group was for his physics course which he was struggling to keep up with. Two: he hated making the rest of the group wait on him. Most importantly, though, three: the aforementioned classmate who he found very attractive and who was punctual to a fault.

Okay, so maybe he hadn’t been with a real person in quite a while. He would begrudgingly admit to being just a bit lonely. He’d broken up with his last boyfriend at the end of spring semester his freshman year and hadn’t so much as been on a date since.

His hefty course schedule in addition to his means of paying for the aforementioned courses didn’t exactly help. What sort of guy wouldn’t have qualms with his operating a digital peep show out of his apartment?

Finally reaching the library, he jogged up the stairs two at a time, slipped through the doors, and made his way to their reserved study room. “Hey, guys. How’s it hanging?” he greeted as he slung his backpack over a chair and slumped down, pulling out his book.

All he got in return was a nod in his direction from Trowa, which was expected as he was definitely a quiet sort, and a distracted “Maxwell” from Wufei. Sparing a fleeting look at the clock, he’d arrived on time, if only just. So where was…?

A noise in the doorway alerted him to the last of their group arriving. He made a small wave and smiled in Heero’s direction as he hastily sat down. “Sorry I’m late: I got caught up with something. It won’t happen again.”

Duo quirked a grin. “No worries, it happens to the best of us.” He had to wonder, though, what the “something” was that had delayed Heero. Unfortunately, Heero didn’t let on any hints and already had his book opened and his homework laid out on the table.

They spent the next hour working their way through the problem set and comparing answers. Initially his classmates were skeptical of his abilities - each of them was a STEM major while he was majoring in illustration with a minor in graphic design in some meager attempt at a failsafe in case his dream of becoming a comic book illustrator fell through. However, he may not always solve problems in the most orthodox manner, but he was more clever than his classmates had initially assumed.

Eventually, they finished and packed up to head out into the night. Trowa and Wufei wandered out first, leaving Duo alone with Heero. Duo had to admit to himself that he was stalling a bit in hopes of getting a bit of one on one time with Heero. As soon as he noticed Heero heading for the door, Duo followed suit. “Any grand weekend plans, Heero?”

Heero grunted neutrally in response. “Not really. I have a project due Monday in my software engineering lab that I need to finish. You?”

Duo grinned inwardly that it seemed Heero might be willing to entertain a conversation. Heero was typically a man of few words, but he gradually had been willing to talk more over the course of the semester. Not a lot by others’ standards, of course, but relatively. He fell into step beside Heero who he knew to live somewhere on the West side of campus not too far from his own apartment.

“I’ll probably spend quite a bit of time in the studio this weekend. I have several pieces I need to finish for my midterm portfolio. Then I’m scheduled to work at the bar Saturday and Sunday evening…” Trailing off, Duo felt awkward mentioning his “job at the bar” which wasn’t actually at a bar and didn’t actually involve serving drinks, and actually did involve his nude form on camera. It was the best cover story he’d been able to come up with - making the bar exist on the far side of town where few students went only bolstered his chances of nobody catching on.

They continued on in comfortable silence for several minutes, with Duo stealing glances periodically.

“You seem to put in a lot of hours at your job on top of your classes,” Heero said abruptly into the chilly air.

“Yeah… I was lucky enough to get scholarships to cover most of my university fees, but I’m on my own for my living expenses.” He blew out a gust of air. “I figure all the hard work will pay off once I graduate and I’m scrambling to find a job. I won’t have quite as much pressure without a bunch of student loans.”

Heero looked contemplative with his brows furrowed. “That’s very responsible of you,” he said, after a beat.

“You say that like you’re surprised by that fact,” Duo turned his head to give Heero half a smile.

“I guess I’d assumed you were the party type. You’ve always been very outgoing since I’ve known you.”

Duo snorted. “I spend most of my time in class, homework, or at my job. I don’t actually get out much.”

They continued on in silence until they reached the main road on this side of campus where Duo would have to turn south to continue on to his apartment. Without much thought, he blurted: “Let me know if you’re not too busy with your project Saturday night. I work the late shift so maybe we could get dinner or something.”

Heero’s expression revealed nothing about how his offer was received. “Maybe. I’ll let you know.” He turned and started down the sidewalk in the opposite direction.

“See you around, then,” Duo called and just received a raised hand in response. He blew out a puff of air into the evening and sighed. Really, he’d gotten more than he expected. The guy probably wasn’t even interested in men, much less himself. It couldn’t hurt to test the waters a bit, though, could it?


	3. Chapter 3

Duo rolled his shoulders as he left Altron Hall. A half day spent leaning over a drafting table will add twenty years to your back, that’s for sure. At least he could say that he’d finished most of what he needed to this weekend for his midterm portfolio which would be shown in the art department’s gallery in a month. To stay on track for his deadlines, he’d only need to come into the studio for a few hours tomorrow.

Unexpected free time? However would he cope?

He pulled his phone out of his pocket to check the time and his texts. Just in time for dinner and zero texts. He’d known better than to hope that Heero might have reached out about dinner. Really. His heart had ran ahead of his brain and ignited a little fire under his crush, though.

Reaching his apartment, he found his roommate sitting on a barstool at the kitchen island.

“Good evening, Duo. How did it go in the studio today?”

“Hey, Quatre. I made some really good progress today, but I’ll still be returning tomorrow. I’m a real glutton for punishment.”

Quatre laughed. He understood the amount of hard work that Duo had to put in more than most as he was a music major and a concert pianist. He spent as much time in the university’s rehearsal rooms as Duo did in the studio.

However, Quatre - unlike Duo - came from a wealthy family and didn’t have to worry about how he was going to pay for school. Duo had been on his own for most of his childhood, and especially since he’d turned 18. He didn’t begrudge Quatre that, though, just because that’s how the chips fell.

“So I take it by the fact that you’re not scrambling to preen yourself that you’re staying in for the night?” asked Quatre lightly with a sympathetic smile.

Duo tried to put the brakes on the blush rising to the surface of his face. “Yeah… I have to be online tonight anyway so it’s probably for the best. Wouldn’t want to be late and disappoint any of my adoring fans.”

Quatre was well aware of what Duo did to pay the bills by this point, but he had certainly come a long way from the innocent, sheltered, and wide-eyed freshman he had started out as. They simply had an agreement that Duo was to work whilst he was away from the apartment, or kept the noise to a bare minimum when that wasn’t possible.

“Well, you’ll have the place to yourself until late tonight. I had to take the last reservation slot available to practice for my midterm recital.”

“You bemoan that time slot, but we both know you took it hoping you might run into that flautist again…”

“I… have no idea what you’re talking about.” Quatre evaded further questioning by getting up and pulling on his jacket. “Have fun with your ‘adoring fans’, Duo.”

Duo chortled as he snagged a soda from the fridge and meandered back to his room to relax before showtime.

Some time later found Duo lying on his stomach on his bed, head propped on the heel of his hand, with his laptop in front of him. It was still early in his planned session and users were popping in and out.  His curiosity was piqued when he noticed the guy from his last foray online appear in the users list.

The way this usually worked out for him is that he’d have scheduled times that he’d be camming. He’d spend at least half the time just chatting with users in the chat room, gradually losing clothes along the way, and culminating in something in steamy to entice tips from the room. A guy’s gotta do what a guy’s gotta do, right?

Users can only message the person on camera via the chat room, unless they tip over a certain amount every month which entitles them the ability to directly message the person they tipped. It so happened that this person from his last session, wing_zero, had crossed that threshold. He was considering whether to initiate a private conversation himself when the decision was taken out of his hands.

> wing_zero: How are you?

Duo quirked a smile as he decided how to reply. Probably best to reply via text as he was still on cam with the rest of the chat room.

> shinigami: Doing alright. Just trying to get through the semester. What about you?

> wing_zero: The same. Has this semester been especially terrible for you?

His hands hovered over the keyboard as he considered that question. It wasn’t so much that it was worse than previous semesters had been, but that he just missed being with someone. Despite appearances to the contrary, and especially ironic considering what he was doing at this very moment, he still enjoyed a bit of romance and cuddly stuff. He was just feeling a bit of a hole in his life right now, is all.

> wing_zero: That bad? Sorry, I didn’t mean to upset you.

Duo hurried to respond and stop ruminating.

> shinigami: No, sorry, it’s fine. Really. Just been a bit lonely lately, that’s all. I’ve had a lot on my plate with school, too.

> wing_zero: Lonely? You’re not seeing anyone?

> shinigami: Nope. No boyfriend or anything. Just living the single life right now.

> shinigami: It’s probably for the best. I can be a handful. ;-)

Bouncing back into the main chat room, Duo spent a bit of time chatting with the other users before returning to a flurry of direct messages.

> wing_zero: I just can’t believe that someone like you is single.

> wing_zero: You’re stunning.

> wing_zero: Sorry if that’s creepy and inappropriate…

> wing_zero: I’m not very knowledgeable about how this works.

The sincerity was pretty adorable, he had to admit. He smiled even as he found flames licking his face. Honestly, usually people were a hell of lot more crude in these sessions. He wasn’t used to whatever this was - flirting? The nice kind, anyway, not just with the aim of getting his clothes off.

> shinigami: hey man, it’s cool :-) not creepy at all

> shinigami: admittedly… I did try to ask out a guy that I’ve had a crush on

> shinigami: he made it pretty clear that he wasn’t interested when he never followed up about dinner tonight, though

> shinigami: I’m pretty bummed out, but what can you do? You win some, you lose some

Duo was expecting a swift response as the previous ones had been rather rapid-fire, but as the seconds slipped by he flushed. It probably wasn’t the best idea to get into his misadventures in dating in this context. Letting his mouth, er, fingers get ahead of his better judgement. He ventured back into the chat room with the rest of the increasingly restless masses.

The rest of the evening went on fairly predictably. He lost his shirt first, thankful that he had the foresight for a button down shirt as he deftly undid the buttons. Abandoning his laptop to a corner of his bed, he threw himself backwards to lie flat on his back with his hands ghosting over his chest.

He let out a long, drawn out sigh. “Would you guys mind a bit of music? Starts to feel pretty stuffy in here with just me, myself, and I.” Reaching over to the keyboard, he turned on a mix by one of his favorite chillwave musicians - Tycho - and let himself relax. Just because Heero wasn’t interested in him in real life didn’t mean that he couldn’t fantasize on his own, right?

He considered what could have been an ideal evening, palming himself through his jeans as he did so. Heero would have texted him last night as soon as he got home, apparently having been eager for such an invitation. Fantasy Heero had a mutual crush on him, he had just been too shy to act on it. He would have suggested that taco stand down on the pier where they could have taken their food down to the beach to watch the sunset. Fantasy Heero wouldn’t have minded that it was cheesy and cliché.

He unbuttoned his jeans and slipped them off, leaving just his black boxer briefs behind. His dick was thoroughly interested in where this was leading, and he slid his hand into his underwear to stroke himself.

Fantasy Heero would have opened up a bit over their food and shared with Duo more about himself than just his coursework. He’d have asked Duo about himself, too, and been genuinely interested in his answers. Duo would have blushed, he was sure, when Fantasy Heero slipped an arm around his back and asked him if he’d like to walk further down the beach. Fantasy Heero would have given him a smile as he threaded their fingers together and led him along the shore to a secluded area behind a rocky outcrop.

Duo moaned when he imagined Fantasy Heero pulling him close and gently backing him up against the rocks as he kissed him for the first time. “I’ve wanted to do this for so long,” Fantasy Heero would say, before deepening the kiss into something much more insistent. He would be able to feel this Heero’s arousal through his jeans and there would be no doubt that he wanted him, too.

Duo threaded one hand into his hair as his breathing grew heavier. He heard the ding of incoming messages on his laptop but he ignored them for the time being. This was the “show” they were paying for, anyway.

He imagined Fantasy Heero leaning backwards, looking into his eyes, and slowly moving his hand to his belt to ask permission. Duo would slide his own hand down to unbutton Heero’s jeans in response. They would both gasp as skin found contact with skin for the first time. “God, Duo…” Fantasy Heero would breathe hotly against his face. It would feel so damn good to have Heero’s hand on his dick. Heero would push both of their cocks together and they’d both moan in unison. He would wrap his hand around both of them and kiss Duo with an urgency and need that –

Duo came loudly moaning Heero’s name as he did so, panting harshly. He allowed himself a minute to calm down before running his hand over his face and cleaning himself up with some tissues on his nightstand. He pulled the laptop back up onto his lap as he leaned back against the wall behind his bed. “That fucking felt great, guys. Exactly what I needed tonight.” Well, not exactly - exactly would have been if that hadn’t been a fantasy at all. A guy’s gotta take what a guy’s can get, though, he thought.

The chat room was full of the usual commentary. He replied lightheartedly to some messages there before he noticed that the mystery guy from earlier had finally replied to him directly.

> wing_zero: Maybe he was just shy and didn’t know how to respond.

> wing_zero: Maybe he hasn’t been able to stop beating himself up for being such a coward about it.

> wing_zero: Maybe he wishes he’d had the courage to follow his feelings for once.

Duo raised an eyebrow, and started to reply before he noticed that the guy was offline now, anyway, leaving behind another generous tip. He really doubted that any of those statements described the real Heero… despite how much he wished to the contrary, he hadn’t really been given any inkling of interest in return. He sighed and signed off for the evening.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Tycho mix in question is this one:  
> https://soundcloud.com/tycho/ingress-burning-man-sunrise-set-2017


	4. Chapter 4

It was Friday night again, and Duo felt like the week would never end as he made his way out of the art building. He had just finished presenting his midterm portfolio. Being the last of his classmates to present had been a blessing and a curse as it had given him slightly more time to put the finishing touches on his work, but now he hadn’t even had dinner yet and he still had to go to the physics study group.

He also had been forced to sacrifice his planned cam sessions this week. Too many midterm projects, exams, and presentations had eaten up his time. School had to come first, he knew, but that meant that money was going to be a bit tighter than he’d prefer for a little while. He wasn’t above eating ramen noodles and pilfering food from on campus events to stretch his grocery budget. He could pretend to be interested in just about anything for a few slices of pizza.

Finally arriving at the library, he continued through to their usual room finding Trowa, Wufei, and Heero already seated around the table. His eyes lingered on the latter for a moment before he slung himself into the last remaining chair and leaning forward to rest his head on the table.

Wufei arched an eyebrow. “Have a long day, Maxwell?”

“More like a long week. Month. Semester.” Duo groaned, then pulled himself upright again to find the appropriate book and materials. “No offense to you guys, but I can’t wait until this class is finished. If I have to calculate the angular acceleration or use my right hand for anything to do with magnetic force* after this semester, I might just lose it.”

Trowa couldn’t contain his mirth while Wufei rolled his eyes. “Let’s just get to work, then, so that your right hand can move on to… more pleasurable activities.” Wufei parried back with a completely deadpan face.

Feeling his face shift to a burning crimson, Duo busied himself with finding the appropriate section of his physics book and arranging his papers. Wufei wasn’t aware of his extracurricular activities, surely? He wasn’t ashamed of it - a guy’s gotta do what a guy’s gotta do, right? - but all the same it would be easier if he could keep this under wraps. Duo sneaked a peek at Heero but thankfully he was already studiously working through the problem set and seemingly disengaged from the conversation.

Duo forced himself to focus on the task at hand, but found it difficult to concentrate. He struggled through the assignment and begrudgingly asked for help from his classmates. Feeling like the weight and stress from the week was finally catching up to him, he sighed as he was only halfway finished when their session was up and everyone else started packing up to leave. Wufei and Trowa waved as they strode out into the library’s atrium and into the night.

Heero paused near the doorway upon noticing that Duo was still seated. “Aren’t you coming, Duo?”

Sighing heavily, Duo started shuffling his materials into his backpack. “Yup. Just a bit slow on the uptake tonight.” Just as he was closing the zipper, his stomach growled loudly and audibly. For the second time that evening, flames licked Duo’s face and he chuckled sheepishly.

“Didn’t you have dinner? It’s nearly 9 p.m.”

“Ah, no. I came here straight from my portfolio presentation after being in class all day. My lunch consisted of the finest vending machine fare that Altron Hall had to offer, so I guess my stomach has finally had enough. Or, rather, not enough.” Duo tried to laugh away his embarrassment as he moved towards the door and followed Heero as he left the library.

Heero cleared his throat. “There’s a pizza place that’s a block off campus that I know is open late.”

“As incredible as that sounds right now… I should probably just eat something at home. I’m definitely living up to the poor college student stereotype right now, if you catch my drift.”

They walked in silence for a bit before Heero’s voice abruptly cut into the air. “I could pay. It wouldn’t be any trouble. I think I owe you for blowing you off last Saturday, anyway.”

Duo did a double take and felt himself flush. Was Heero trying to ask him out? His mind felt like it went into overdrive as he scrambled to retrace the conversation to the present. He realized he had been quiet for far too long when he heard Heero clear his throat again.

“If you need to go home, that’s fine. I understand.”

“No! No, it’s alright. I just didn’t realize you were offering to go with me, I thought you were just informing me about late night pizza.” Duo rubbed the back of his neck and laughed nervously. “I think I have some cash on me - I should be able to take care of myself. It would be nice not to eat alone in my dark apartment, anyway.”

Heero’s eyes widened slightly and then he nodded before altering their course across campus. The awkwardness felt palpable, and true to form, Duo found himself anxiously trying to fill the void. “How are your midterms going so far, Heero?” Duo groaned inwardly: he felt like he might as well be asking about the weather. 

“They’ve gone well. Thankfully, I have had mostly individual projects instead of exams this semester. I dislike group projects generally and there’s fewer unknowns with projects rather than exams.”

Duo nodded. “I feel the same way. I like taking the time to craft something instead of rushing through a bunch of multiple choice or essay questions in under an hour. What were your projects? Or was it something that’s going to fly way over my head?”

“They weren’t anything exciting. One was to write an operating system and another was to write a web application that would categorize and sort memes**.”

“Wait, memes? Did you come up with that idea?”

Heero snorted. “No, my professor likes to pretend that he’s still young and has any idea what his students are doing in their free time.”

Duo burst out laughing and Heero smirked in response just as they reached the door of Joey’s Pizza. It was a “by the slice” kind of place so they ordered at the counter before sitting down with their food.

“Have you always been interested in computers?”

“Yeah. My parents traveled a lot for work, so I started tinkering with our home computer out of boredom. I eventually started fixing computers for a little extra money. I took a few introductory programming courses in high school and liked how it felt like solving puzzles, so I decided to continue with it in college.”

Duo smiled. Heero was being uncharacteristically open and candid. Even if he wasn’t sure what exactly this was - just hanging out as friends or something more - it was nice. “I guess I’ll know to reach out to you if I ever have any computer trouble then.”

“What about you? How did you become interested in art?”

“I guess I’ve doodled ever since I can remember. I started writing and illustrating my own comic books sometime around middle school. I liked imagining super hero abilities and drawing what the hero would look like. I’m just a sucker for the whole good triumphing over evil thing.”

“Do you have any of your work with you? I don’t think I’ve seen any of your illustrations.”

“Oh! Uh, I might, although it’ll just be rough sketches and nothing good…” Duo turned to root around in his backpack for a drawing pad. He flipped through the pages to a sheet which had a drawing of a man with large wings and a flaming sword in his hand.

Heero raised his eyebrow. “You call this rough? I can only imagine the finished pieces if that’s the case.”

Duo raised his hand to rub the back of his neck, not able to keep a smile from sneaking onto his face. “Thanks, Heero.”

The conversation ebbed and flowed around similar topics until Heero indicated that he had an early appointment with a desperate woman who needed his help to recover her baby’s photos from a seemingly lifeless computer.

Just outside the door on the sidewalk, Duo ventured, “I really had a good time tonight. Maybe we can do this again soon?”

Heero hesitantly smiled in return. “Sure. And let me know if you need help finishing that physics assignment.”

Duo couldn’t contain his smile as he walked back to his apartment. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> * The “right hand rule” is a method for determining the direction of the magnetic force on a positive charge (https://courses.lumenlearning.com/boundless-physics/chapter/magnetic-force-on-a-moving-electric-charge/). It’s literally the only way I remembered this on exams in college, which I’m sure looked awkward as hell to anyone observing.
> 
> ** So I had a professor who asked us to do this in a web application course. He also dressed up like Antoine Dodson for Halloween during class. He was a nice guy, just really into internet culture.


End file.
